Network Clock Synchronization Floating Window and Window Delineation

ABSTRACT

A network component comprising at least one processor configured to implement a method comprising initiating a synchronization window, and promoting the transmission of a frame comprising a control symbol, wherein the control symbol delineates a beginning of the frame, and wherein the control symbol is offset from the beginning of the synchronization window. Also disclosed is a system comprising an upstream node in communication with a downstream node, wherein the upstream node transmits a data stream comprising a plurality of frames to the downstream node, wherein the data stream is organized into a plurality of synchronization windows, and wherein the frames float within the synchronization windows. Included is a method comprising transmitting an Ethernet data stream comprising an Ethernet control symbol, wherein the Ethernet control symbol is transmitted within a synchronization window and delineates a start of a packet within the synchronization window.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 60/826,764 filed Sep. 25, 2006 and entitled “System for TDM DataTransport Over Ethernet Interfaces,” U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 60/857,741 filed Nov. 8, 2006 and entitled “TDM Data Transport OverEthernet,” and U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/886,833 filedJan. 26, 2007 and entitled “Closed Loop Clock Synchronization,” all ofwhich are by Serge F. Fourcand and are incorporated herein by referenceas if reproduced in their entirety.

This application is related to U.S. patent application Ser. No.(Attorney Docket No. 4194-03200) entitled “Inter-Packet Gap NetworkClock Synchronization,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. (AttorneyDocket No. 4194-04400) entitled “Network Clock SynchronizationTimestamp,” and U.S. patent application Ser. No. (Attorney Docket No.4194-04500) entitled “Multi-Frame Network Clock Synchronization,” all ofwhich are by Serge F. Fourcand, are filed concurrently herewith, and areincorporated herein by reference as if reproduced in their entirety.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not applicable.

REFERENCE TO A MICROFICHE APPENDIX

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND

Ethernet is the preferred protocol for many types of networks because itis flexible, decentralized, and scalable. Ethernet is flexible in thatit allows variable-sized data packets to be transported across differenttypes of mediums using various nodes each having different transmissionspeeds. Ethernet is decentralized in that it allows the end devices totransmit and receive data without oversight or intervention from acentralized server or party. Furthermore, Ethernet is scalable in thatit can be implemented in both small-scale and large-scale networks.These advantages make Ethernet a preferred choice for data distributionin many computer networks.

Unfortunately, Ethernet does have some drawbacks. When Ethernet packetsare transported through the network, the Ethernet packets contend withother traffic being transported over the same links or through the samenodes. The contentious traffic not only includes packets bound for thesame destination, but also packets bound for other destinations that aretransported over the same link or through the same node as the Ethernetpacket. This contention produces burstiness and jitter at the nodeswithin the network. Some of these problems can be addressed by usingresource arbitration and buffers at the nodes, and by prioritizing thepackets into high priority data and low priority data. However, thesesolutions increase network complexity, increase delay, and detract fromthe inherent advantages of Ethernet.

The aforementioned drawbacks are part of the reason Ethernet has notbeen widely implemented in networks carrying time division multiplexed(TDM) data. Specifically, Ethernet does not provide a sufficient Qualityof Service (QoS) to meet the stringent jitter and data loss requirementsfor voice traffic in the public switched telephone network (PSTN) andother TDM networks. Instead, TDM traffic is carried by highlysynchronized networks, such as synchronous optical networks (SONET) andsynchronous digital hierarch (SDH) networks. Various Ethernetenhancements, such as circuit emulation, provider backbone transport,and pseudowires, have been proposed to address the jitter and data lossissues, but these enhancements fail to couple the flexibility ofEthernet with the high QoS requirements of TDM networks. Thus, a needexists for an improved Ethernet protocol that is flexible, easy toimplement, supports the QoS requirements of TDM networks, and iscompatible with existing technology.

SUMMARY

In one aspect, the disclosure includes a network component comprising atleast one processor configured to implement a method comprisinginitiating a synchronization window, and promoting the transmission of aframe comprising a control symbol, wherein the control symbol delineatesa beginning of the frame, and wherein the control symbol is offset fromthe beginning of the synchronization window.

In another aspect, the disclosure includes a system comprising anupstream node in communication with a downstream node, wherein theupstream node transmits a data stream comprising a plurality of framesto the downstream node, wherein the data stream is organized into aplurality of synchronization windows, and wherein the frames floatwithin the synchronization windows.

In a third aspect, the disclosure includes a method comprisingtransmitting an Ethernet data stream comprising an Ethernet controlsymbol, wherein the Ethernet control symbol is transmitted within asynchronization window and delineates a start of a packet within thesynchronization window.

These and other features will be more clearly understood from thefollowing detailed description taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of this disclosure, reference is nowmade to the following brief description, taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings and detailed description, wherein like referencenumerals represent like parts.

FIG. 1 is an illustration of an embodiment of an Ethernet MAC frame.

FIG. 2 is an illustration of an embodiment of an Ethernet data stream.

FIG. 3 is an illustration of another embodiment of the Ethernet datastream.

FIG. 4 is an illustration of an embodiment of a synchronizationtimestamp format.

FIG. 5A is an illustration of an embodiment of a process of establishingsynchronized communication.

FIG. 5B is an illustration of an embodiment of a timeline forestablishing synchronized communication.

FIG. 6A is an illustration of one embodiment of an H-TDM frame.

FIG. 6B is an illustration of another embodiment of the H-TDM frame.

FIG. 7A is an illustration of another embodiment of the H-TDM frame.

FIG. 7B is an illustration of another embodiment of the H-TDM frame.

FIG. 8 is an illustration of another embodiment of a synchronizationtimestamp format.

FIG. 9A is an illustration of another embodiment of a process ofestablishing synchronized communication.

FIG. 9B is an illustration of another embodiment of a timeline forestablishing synchronized communication.

FIG. 10 is an illustration of an embodiment of a clocking architecture.

FIG. 11 is an illustration of one embodiment of a general-purposecomputer system suitable for implementing the several embodiments of thedisclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

It should be understood at the outset that although an illustrativeimplementation of one or more embodiments are provided below, thedisclosed systems and/or methods may be implemented using any number oftechniques, whether currently known or in existence. The disclosureshould in no way be limited to the illustrative implementations,drawings, and techniques described below, including the exemplarydesigns and implementations illustrated and described herein, but may bemodified within the scope of the appended claims along with their fullscope of equivalents.

Synchronization of nodes across a network has many practicalapplications. For example, it is preferable that all of the audiochannels be synchronized to each other in sports stadiums or other largevenues. In addition, at large venues there may be a video screen thatprovides visualizations along with the audio presentation. In this case,it may be important that not only the audio channels be all synchronizedto each other but also to the video display. Another application ofsynchronization may be for multiple people to work remotely in real-timetogether. For example, each musician in a band may be remotely locatedfrom each other while having a recording session at a remote recordingstudio. In this example, the music produced by each musician may besynchronized together to be recorded at the remote recording studio.Many other applications that have already been envisioned and have yetto be envisioned are enabled through synchronized communication.

The inclusion of clock synchronization data in the Ethernet packets hasbeen previously addressed. For example, IEEE 1588 specifies thattimestamps may be added to packets to communicate a timestamp betweennodes in the network. However, including the timestamp within the packetcreates the problem of accurately indicating the packet's transmissiontime, e.g. the time that the packet is sent. The transmission time maybe inaccurate because the timestamp has to be processed and encapsulatedwithin a packet, a process that delays the transmission of the packet inan unpredictable manner. Specifically, delays caused by the insertion ofthe timestamp into the packet and by implementing carrier sense multipleaccess with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) may cause the timestamp tobecome stale. These delays are unpredictable in that they vary based onthe packet, the node, and other network conditions. Similarly, uponreceiving a timestamp at a downstream node, further delays may beincurred when the packet is buffered and/or processed to extract thetimestamp. To compensate for these delays, IEEE 1588 specifies that afollow-up timestamp be communicated to a downstream node to indicate theprecise time when the initial timestamp was communicated. Unfortunately,the prior art methods for clock synchronization are bandwidth limitingdue to multiple packets being communicated from the upstream nodes tothe downstream nodes. Further, the prior art methods for clocksynchronization do not take into account internal processing delays atthe downstream node.

Disclosed herein are multiple operational modes that provide clocksynchronization between nodes in an Ethernet network, which may bereferred to herein as Huawei-Enhanced (HE) Ethernet operational modes. Afirst operational mode is frequency-synchronized communication mode,also referred to as a Huawei synchronized (H-Sync) operational mode. TheH-Sync operational mode places a timestamp in the inter-packet gap (IPG)between two Ethernet packets. The timestamp may be used to indicate thestart of a predefined periodic synchronization window that enablesfrequency-synchronized communication between two Ethernet nodes. Theinclusion of the timestamp in the IPG may not be bandwidth limitingbecause the IPG is an idle period in standard Ethernet communication.Adding the timestamp to the IPG rather than to an Ethernet packet allowsthe nodes to process the timestamp without having to process an entirepacket.

A second operational mode is a frequency-synchronized and phase-alignedcommunication mode, also referred to as a Huawei Time DivisionMultiplexed (H-TDM) operational mode. The H-TDM operational mode definesan overlay synchronous timeslot scheme that multiplexes octet-sizedtimeslots of timestamp, control, and payload data within a predefinedsynchronization window. The payload data can include any of voice data,high priority data such as video data, and best-effort packet data. Theoverlay synchronous timeslot scheme enables deterministic transfer ofhigh priority data without contention, and thus supports the stringentQoS requirements of the PSTN. The timestamp data contained in theoverlay synchronous timeslot scheme includes a forward timestamp thatestablishes the start of the predefined synchronization window, whichenable frequency-synchronized communication, and a loop-back timestampthat compensates for transmission delays, which enables phase-alignedcommunication between two Ethernet nodes.

FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of an Ethernet packet 100. The packet100 begins with a preamble 104, which may be about seven octets of arepeated pattern, such as “10101010.” The preamble 104 may allow anode's physical layer signaling (PLS) circuitry to reach steady-statesynchronization with the packet's timing. The preamble 104 may befollowed by a start of frame delimiter (SFD) 106, which may be a singleoctet with the pattern “10101011,” and may be used to indicate the startof the packet 100. The destination address (DA) 108 may specify theaddress of the destination node for which the packet 100 is intended,and may be about six octets. The source address (SA) 110 may specify theaddress of the source node from which the packet 100 originated, and maybe about six octets. The packet 100 may contain a plurality of optionaloctets 112 that are used to associate the packet 100 with a typeprotocol identifier (TPID) and/or a virtual local area networkidentifier (VID). For example, up to about sixteen octets may be usedfor associating the packet 100 with a TPID and a VID, for example, asdescribed in IEEE 802.1Q.

The packet 100 continues with a length/type field 114, which may specifythe length of the payload and the Ethernet protocol being used, and maybe about two octets. The payload 116 may be a variable-sized field thatcarries a data payload. Although the payload 116 may contain any amountof data, in specific embodiments the payload 116 may contain from about42 octets to about 1,500 octets in standard packets, and may containfrom about 9,000 octets to about 12,000 octets in jumbo packets. Theframe check sequence (FCS) 118 may be used for error detection, and maybe a four-octet field that contains a cyclic redundancy check (CRC)value calculated using the contents of the packet 100. Although not partof the packet 100, the IPG 102 may be data or idle characters thatseparate the packets 100. The IPG 102 may contain about twelve octets ofidle control characters, although any amount of data or idle charactersmay be used in the IPG 102.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, a synchronous timestamp (Sync) 202 may beinserted in the IPG 102 between two packets 204. The Sync 202 may beused to synchronize an upstream node's clock with a downstream node'sclock in the H-Sync operational mode. Specifically, the Sync 202 may bea four-octet packet that synchronizes the two clocks in frequency, butdoes not necessarily align the clocks in phase. The Sync 202 may alsoindicate the start of a synchronization window having a predeterminedperiod, such as about 125 microseconds (μs). The Sync 202 need not belocated in every IPG 102, but in some embodiments, it may beadvantageous to have at least one, Sync 202 during every synchronizationwindow.

In some embodiments, there are advantages to inserting the timestamp inthe IPG 102. For example, the H-Sync timestamp does not affect theavailable bandwidth because the Sync 202 is located in the IPG 102,which is an idle period in standard Ethernet communications. Further,communicating the timestamp in the IPG 102, rather than within thepacket 100, allows the timestamp to be transmitted independent of thepacket 100. The independent transmission of the Sync 202 and the packet100 ensures that the timestamp will not become stale, and allows theupstream and downstream nodes' clocks to be synchronized withouttransmitting multiple timestamps from the upstream node to thedownstream node. Similarly, upon receiving the timestamp at a downstreamnode, the timestamp may be extracted and processed without processingthe packet 100.

Clock accuracy is a consideration when synchronizing clocks betweenEthernet nodes. Most clocks have imperfect frequency sources that leadto imperfect clock accuracy. Currently, IEEE 802.3 requires that theaccuracy of a free-running oscillator sourcing the frequency base for anEthernet interface to be ±100 parts per million (ppm), where the ppmindicates how much offset an oscillator will have for a given frequencyover a given time period. A clock with ±100 ppm accuracy has afree-running oscillator that may be ahead (+) by 100 ppm or behind (−)by 100 ppm, resulting in a possible 200 ppm range of accuracy for atwo-way Ethernet communication. As an example, a transmitting Ethernetinterface oscillator may be ahead by 100 ppm and a receiving Ethernetinterface oscillator may be behind by 100 ppm. Thus, if each clock has aone-second frequency with ±100 ppm accuracy, they will each be offset byas much as about 8.64 seconds over the course of a day. To bettersupport the operational modes described herein and future development,e.g. 100 Gigabit Ethernet, the accuracy requirement of a free-runningoscillator sourcing the frequency base for an Ethernet interface may beincreased to be ± about 20 ppm. Thus, a clock with a one-secondfrequency and ±20 ppm accuracy may reflect an offset of about 1.728seconds over the course of a day. When the requirement for afree-running oscillator sourcing the frequency base for an Ethernetinterface is ± about 20 ppm or better, the Ethernet interface may besaid to be operating in a Huawei-Ethernet (H-Eth) operational mode.

FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment in which at least one Sync 202 isincluded in a synchronization window. The Sync 202 is used to mitigatethe effects of clock inaccuracy, and may be included in eachsynchronization window. For example, if the synchronization period isabout 125 μs, then the Sync 202 is communicated at least once aboutevery 125 μs. A network node may maintain a timer that indicates whenthe next Sync 202 should be communicated to ensure communication of theSync 202 at least once within every synchronization window. Within thesynchronization window, the communication of packets 100 may proceed asnormal. Although not illustrated in FIG. 3, in some embodiments theremay be a plurality of Syncs 202 between two packets. For example, theremay be two or more Syncs 202 between two packets when the Syncs 202 arecommunicated at least once every 125 μs and the time period between theend of one packet and the beginning of a subsequent packet is more than125 μs. Persons of ordinary skill in the art will be aware of otherinstances when there will be a plurality of Syncs 202 between packets.

FIG. 3 also illustrates the placement of the Sync 202 within the IPG102. Although the Sync 202 may be inserted anywhere within the IPG 102,some specific locations may be preferred. For example, the Sync 202 maybe inserted into the center of the IPG 102 such that an equal number ofidle octets 302 are present before and after the Sync 202. Specifically,if the IPG 102 is twelve octets long, then the Sync 202 may be insertedin the middle four octets, with four octets 302 preceding and fouroctets 302 following the Sync 202. Another example is that the Sync 202may be placed within the IPG 102 such that at least two idle octets arelocated between the Sync 202 and the previous or next packet 100.Alternatively, the Sync 202 may be inserted at the beginning of the IPG102, at the end of the IPG 102, or at any other location within the IPG102.

FIG. 4 illustrates one embodiment of the Sync 202. Specifically, FIG. 4illustrates a four octet Sync 202 where each row represents an octet andeach column represents the position of the bits within each octet. Theoctets may be arranged in order of significance from top to bottom suchthat the least significant octet, octet 0, is at the top and the mostsignificant octet, octet 3, is at the bottom. Similarly, the bits may bearranged in order of significance from left to right, such that theleast significant bit (LSB) of each octet, bit 0, is at the left and themost significant bit (MSB) of each octet, bit 7, is at the right. As iscommon in Ethernet communications, data may be communicated from the LSBto the MSB and from least significant octet to most significant octet,such that the bits are communicated row-by-row from left to rightstarting with the top octet and ending with the bottom octet.

The first three octets in the Sync 202 may be a twenty-four bittimestamp. Specifically, octet 0 may contain the LSBs of the twenty-fourbit timestamp, which may be bits 00 through 07 of the timestamp locatedin bit 0 through bit 7 of octet 0. Octet 1 may contain the next eightbits of the twenty-four bit timestamp, which may be bits 08 through 15of the timestamp located in bit 0 through bit 7 of octet 1. Octet 2 maycontain the MSBs of the twenty-four bit timestamp, which may be bits 16through 23 of the timestamp located in bit 0 through bit 7 of octet 2.With twenty-four bits available for the timestamp, each bit mayrepresent a timestamp resolution of about 0.01 nanoseconds (ns) for atotal range of about 167.772 μs. When the synchronization windows have aperiod of about 125 μs, then each bit may represent a timestampresolution as low as about 7.451 picoseconds (ps) and still cover thefull range of the 125 μs window. In some embodiments, more or less bitsmay be used in the timestamp. For example, if sixteen bits were used inthe timestamp, then the size of the Sync 202 would be reduced to threeoctets, and each bit would represent a timestamp resolution of about twonanoseconds (ns) for a range of about 131.072 μs. Persons of ordinaryskill in the art will recognize the proper balance of the number of bitsused in the timestamp and the timestamp resolution represented by eachbit to cover a given timestamp range for a given network.

The fourth octet in the Sync 202 may be control information. The controlinformation may be used to initiate frequency-synchronized communicationbetween an upstream node and a downstream node. The first five bits, bit0 through bit 4, may indicate the clock quality of the node that isinitiating the synchronization request, e.g. the upstream node. Thesixth bit, bit 5, may indicate whether the Sync 202 is a request forfrequency-synchronized communication or an acknowledgement of a previousrequest for frequency-synchronized communication. In embodiments, bit 5is set to “0” when the Sync 202 is a request for frequency-synchronizedcommunication, and bit 5 is set to “1” when the Sync 202 is anacknowledgement of a previous request for frequency-synchronizedcommunication. The seventh bit, bit 6, may indicate the operational modethat is being requested or acknowledged. In embodiments, bit 6 is set to“0” when the H-Sync operational mode is being requested or acknowledged,and bit 6 is set to “1” when the H-TDM operational mode is beingrequested or acknowledged. The last bit, bit 7, may be used as a paritybit for verifying the integrity of the Sync 202.

FIG. 5A illustrates an exemplary block diagram of the process forinitiating the frequency-synchronized communication between two nodes.The process may begin when a synchronization request 506 is sent from anupstream node 502 to a downstream node 504 at time T1. Thesynchronization request 506 may have the format of the Sync 202illustrated in FIG. 4, where the timestamp indicates time T1. Thesynchronization request 506 may also have bit 5 of octet 3 set to “0”and bit 6 of octet 3 set to “0” to indicate that the synchronizationrequest 506 is a request for the H-Sync operational mode. Concurrently,the upstream node 502 may initiate its synchronization window. If thedownstream node 504 supports the H-Sync operational mode, then thedownstream node 504 will receive and process the synchronization request506 at time T2. Specifically, the downstream node 504 may use thetimestamp to create a synchronization window that isfrequency-synchronized to a corresponding synchronization window in theupstream node 502. Both synchronization windows may have a period ofabout 125 μs.

The downstream node 504 may synchronize its synchronization window withthe timestamp using various methods. Specifically, the downstream node504 may frequency-synchronize its synchronization window to acorresponding synchronization window in the upstream node 502 by settingits clock equal to the timestamp. For example, upon receiving thesynchronization request 506 with the timestamp T1, the downstream node504 may set its clock to time T1. Alternatively, the downstream node 504may record an offset between its clock and the timestamp, which allowsthe downstream node 504 to be frequency-synchronized to multiple nodes.For example, in addition to being downstream from the upstream node 502,the downstream node 504 may also be downstream from another node, nodeA. Specifically, the upstream node 502 and node A may be connected todifferent ports on the downstream node 504. In this case, the downstreamnode 504 may maintain a first clock offset, thereby enablingfrequency-synchronized communication with the upstream node 502, andmaintain a second clock offset, thereby enabling frequency-synchronizedcommunication with upstream node A. Maintaining a separate offset foreach port may be beneficial when the downstream node 502 communicateswith a plurality of other network nodes via a plurality of ports.

If the downstream node 504 supports the H-Sync operational mode, thedownstream node 504 may send a synchronization acknowledgement 508 tothe upstream node 502. The synchronization acknowledgement 508 may havethe format of the Sync 202 illustrated in FIG. 4 with bit 5 of octet 3set to “1” and with bit 6 of octet 3 set to “0,” thereby indicating thatthe synchronization acknowledgement 506 is an acknowledgement of theH-Sync operational mode. In addition, the synchronizationacknowledgement 508 may contain the timestamp received from the upstreamnode 502. Specifically, the timestamp in the synchronizationacknowledgement 508 may be set to time T1. The inclusion of the originaltimestamp, e.g. T1 from the synchronization request 506, in thesynchronization acknowledgement 508 allows the upstream node 502 tocorrelate the synchronization request 506 with the synchronizationacknowledgement 508. The upstream node 502 may then interpret thesynchronization acknowledgement 508 as an indication that the H-Syncoperational mode has been established. This timestamp loop-back from thedownstream node 504 to the upstream node 502 allows the upstream node502 and the downstream node 504 to be frequency synchronized, that isoffset in time from each other by a consistent amount of time.

The synchronization request 506 does not affect nodes that do notsupport the H-Sync operational mode. Specifically, if the downstreamnode 504 does not support the H-Sync operational mode, then thedownstream node 504 will view the synchronization request 506 as randomdata in the IPG, and will ignore and/or discard the synchronizationrequest 506. If the upstream node 502 does not receive a response to thesynchronization request within a predetermined amount of time, theupstream node 502 may determine that the H-Sync operational mode is notsupported by the downstream node 504. Because nodes that do not supportthe H-Sync operational mode ignore and/or discard the synchronizationrequest 506, backwards compatibility may be enabled such that the nodesthat support the H-Sync operational mode may revert to standard Ethernetprotocols to communicate with the nodes that do not support the H-Syncoperational mode.

In some instances, the downstream node 504 may send a secondsynchronization request, rather than the synchronization acknowledgement508, to the upstream node 502. For example, the downstream node 504 maydetermine that it has a higher quality clock by comparing its clockquality to the indication of the upstream node's clock quality found inthe first five bits of the fourth octet of the synchronization request506. In such a case, the downstream node 504 may initiate its ownsynchronization request 506 that contains the downstream node's higherclock quality in the first five bits of the fourth octet. Alternatively,the downstream node 504 may support another operational mode, such asthe H-TDM operational mode. In such a case, the downstream node 504 mayinitiate its own synchronization request with bit 5 of octet 3 set to“0” and bit 6 of octet 3 set to “1,” so as to request the H-TDMoperational mode. In either case, if the upstream node 502 does notsupport the requested feature, e.g. the higher clock quality or theH-TDM operational mode, the upstream node 502 will not acknowledge thedownstream node's request. After a predetermined time of not receivingan acknowledgement to its request, the downstream node 504 willdetermine that the upstream node 502 does not support the requestedfeature, and will acknowledge the original synchronization request 506.

FIG. 5B illustrates a timeline of one embodiment of thefrequency-synchronized communication between the upstream node 502 andthe downstream node 504. Specifically, FIG. 5B contains a separatetimeline for the upstream node 502 and the downstream node 504, wherethe timelines represent time relative to the corresponding node. Thetime relative to the upstream node 502 is shown above the timeline forthe upstream node 502 and indicated by T_(Ux), where x is an integer.Similarly, the time relative to the downstream node 504 is shown belowthe timeline for the downstream node 504 and indicated by T_(Dx), wherex is an integer. An absolute time is shown between the two timelines andindicated by Tx, where x is an integer. The time relative to theupstream node 502 and the time relative to the downstream node 504 maynot necessarily be equal to the absolute time.

At time T1, the upstream node 502 may communicate the synchronizationrequest 506 to the downstream node 504 and initiate a synchronizationwindow. The synchronization request may include a timestamp thatindicates the time that the synchronization request 506 was transmittedfrom the upstream node 502. Because the timestamp was created by theupstream node 502, the timestamp indicates the synchronization requesttransmission time relative to the upstream node 502, e.g. time T_(U1).Concurrent with the transmission of the synchronization request 506, theupstream node 502 initiates an upstream synchronization window, U_(Sync)Window, with a predetermined period, such as 125 μs. Upon initiating theU_(Sync) Window, time in the upstream node 502 may be measured relativeto start of the current U_(Sync) Window. Specifically, a new U_(Sync)Window is initiated after every predetermined period, e.g. at each oftimes T_(U2), T_(U3), and T_(U4).

At time T2, the downstream node 504 receives the synchronization request506 and performs various actions. When the synchronization request 506is received, the downstream node 504 may synchronize its clock to thetimestamp in the synchronization request 506, e.g. time T_(U1). Forexample, the downstream node clock may be reset such that time relativeto the downstream node 504, T_(D1), is equal to T_(U1). In addition tosynchronizing its clock, the downstream node 504 may initiate adownstream synchronization window D_(Sync) Window, with the samepredetermined period as the U_(Sync) Window. Upon initiating theD_(Sync) Window, time in the downstream node 504 may be measuredrelative to start of the current D_(Sync) Window. Specifically, a newD_(Sync) Window is initiated after every predetermined period, e.g. ateach of times T_(D2), T_(D3), and so forth. Thus, the D_(Sync) Windowsare frequency-synchronized to the U_(Sync) Windows. Upon processing thesynchronization request 506, the downstream node 504 may transmit asynchronization acknowledgement 508 at time T2, thereby informing theupstream node 502 that the H-Sync operational mode has been successfullyestablished.

While the U_(Sync) Windows and the D_(Sync) Windows arefrequency-synchronized, they are not necessarily phase-aligned. As shownin FIG. 5B, there may be a transmission delay, D1, when communicatingthe synchronization request 506 from the upstream node 502 to thedownstream node 504. The transmission delay D1 causes in the phasemisalignment between the U_(Sync) Windows and the D_(Sync) Windows. Forexample, the first U_(Sync) Window may be started at time T1, whereasthe first D_(Sync) Window may be started at time T2, which may be equalto T1 plus D1. While a particular transmission delay D1 may be depictedin FIG. 5B, it may be contemplated that shorter or longer delays mayoccur between the upstream node 502 and the downstream node 504. Forexample, the D_(Sync) Windows may be offset from the U_(Sync) Windows byless than a single synchronization period, by more than a singlesynchronization window, or by x synchronization periods, where x is anumber such as an integer.

The H-TDM operational mode is more complex than the H-Sync operationalmode. Specifically, the H-TDM operational mode provides an overlaysynchronous timeslot scheme that allows the H-TDM operational mode totransport various types of data over a standard Ethernet Physical Layerinterface. The overlay synchronous timeslot scheme may support higherQoS levels than is possible with previous Ethernet solutions. Moreover,the H-TDM operational mode can be used to frequency-synchronize andphase-align two Ethernet nodes. Specifically, the H-TDM timestamp allowsthe upstream node and the downstream node to initiate, synchronize, andphase-align their synchronization windows, thereby increasing theprecision of the communication between the upstream and downstreamnodes. Further, the H-TDM operational mode is configured such that theintegrity of the data is maintained when some of the data at thebeginning or the end of the window is lost.

The overlay synchronous timeslot scheme may allow the H-TDM frame totransport a variety of data types. When the synchronization window has aperiod of about 125 μs, each of the timeslots in the overlay synchronoustimeslot scheme represents a single channel with about 64 kilobits persecond (Kbps) of bandwidth. These channels provide sufficient bandwidthto carry a voice conversation compatible with the public switchedtelephone network (PSTN). Thus, voice channels that are carried in theoverlay synchronous timeslot scheme in an H-TDM frame may be referred toas TDM traffic. The overlay synchronous timeslot scheme also providesoctet-sized granularity for enabling communication of other traffic withstringent quality of service (QoS) requirements, referred to herein asHigh-Performance Flow (HPF) traffic. Examples of HPF traffic includevideo, audio, and other multimedia traffic. HPF traffic may be assignedmultiple channels with single-octet granularity according with bandwidthrequirements of the HPF traffic. In other words, each channel assignedto a HPF increases the bandwidth allocated to the HPF by 64 Kbps. Forexample, a low resolution streaming video HPF requiring about 256 Kbpsof bandwidth may be assigned about four channels from the H-TDM frame.Similarly, a HPF requiring about 3.2 megabits per second (Mbps) ofbandwidth may be assigned about fifty channels from the H-TDM frame.

FIG. 6A depicts one embodiment of the overlay synchronous timeslotscheme of the H-TDM frame. Specifically, FIG. 6A illustrates a 125 μssynchronization window containing an overlay synchronous timeslot schemecomprising a start of frame delimiter (SFD) 603, a synchronizationtimestamp (Sync) 604, a timeslot map (TS Map) 606, and a payload 608.The SFD 603 may delineate a beginning of the H-TDM frame, and may be areserved Ethernet control symbol, such as the /K28.1/ control symbol. Asone skilled in the art will recognize, the /K28.1/ control symbolincludes a comma that may be used to enable 8 bit/10 bit (8B/10B) symbolsynchronization when the overlay synchronous timeslot scheme iscommunicated on 8B/10B encoded media. In an embodiment, the SFD 603 mayalso specify the size of the overlay synchronous timeslot scheme. TheSync 604 follows the SFD 603. As described below, the Sync 604 in theH-TDM operational mode differs from the Sync 202 in the H-Syncoperational mode in that the Sync 604 may be used to initiate thesynchronization windows, synchronize the synchronization windows, andphase-align the synchronization windows between two nodes.

The overlay synchronous timeslot scheme may continue with the TS Map606, which may specify the type and location of the data in the payload608. In one embodiment, the individual timeslots for the payload 608 maybe assigned to TDM, HPF, and BEP traffic according to a predefinedpattern. For example, the first thousand timeslots may be assigned toTDM traffic, the next five thousand timeslots may be assigned to HPFtraffic, and the next three thousand timeslots may be assigned to BEPtraffic. In such an embodiment, the TS Map 606 may be omitted from theH-TDM frame if the nodes are aware of the predefined pattern.Alternatively, the TS Map 606 may indicate the allocation of eachtimeslot in the payload 608 as a TDM, a HPF, or a BEP timeslot. Usingthe TS Map 606, TDM, HPF, and BEP traffic may be dynamically interleavedwithin the overlay synchronous timeslot scheme. A detailed descriptionof the TS Map 606 and the dynamic interleaving of the TDM, HPF, and BEPtraffic may be found in the aforementioned provisional patentapplications.

Some timeslots at the beginning and/or end of the synchronization windowmay be part of a guard interval 602. The guard intervals 602 allow theH-TDM frame to float within the synchronization window. Specifically,the location of SFD 603 in relation to the start of the synchronizationwindow may vary between synchronization windows. As such, the guardinterval 602 at the beginning of the synchronization window may be thesame or a different size than the guard interval 602 at the end of thesynchronization window, and the size of the guard intervals 602 in onesynchronization window may vary from the size of the guard intervals 602in other synchronization windows. Such an embodiment may be advantageousbecause the integrity of the SFD 603, Sync 604, TS Map 606, and the TDMor HPF data in the payload 608 is maintained if any of the data in theguard intervals 602 is dropped, corrupted, lost, or otherwiseunreadable, for example, due to clock tolerances or othernon-deterministic factors. In some embodiments, the guard interval 602may transport low priority best-effort packet (BEP) data. Alternatively,the guard interval 602 may be zero-padded or may contain idlecharacters.

Although the synchronization window may be any duration, there areparticular advantages to using a synchronization window with a period of125 μs. Specifically, synchronizing the overlay synchronous timeslotschemes to a 125 μs synchronization window enables the Ethernet nodes tobe interoperable with the PSTN, SONET, SDH, and other TDM networks. Assuch, when the overlay synchronous timeslot scheme has a 125 μs window,SONET/SDH transport overhead may be added to the overlay synchronoustimeslot scheme format. FIG. 6B illustrates an overlay synchronoustimeslot scheme containing SONET/SDH transport overhead 610. TheSONET/SDH transport overhead 610 allows the data in the payload 608 tobe efficiently mapped between Ethernet networks and the SONET/SDHnetworks used by the PSTN. The SONET/SDH transport overhead 610 isdepicted as surrounding the Sync 604 because the Sync 604 may beinserted into undefined octets of the SONET/SDH transport overhead 610.A detailed description of the mapping of the H-TDM frames between theEthernet format and the SONET/SDH format may be found in theaforementioned provisional patent applications.

FIG. 7A illustrates a more detailed layout of the Sync 604 from FIG. 6A.FIG. 7A contains three rows of information: an internal synchronizationsignal 702 that delineates the synchronization window, a timeline 704that enumerates each timeslot, and a descriptor 706 that describes thedata that may be contained within each timeslot. The internalsynchronization signal 702 may correspond to the synchronization windowestablished when initiating the H-Sync or H-TDM operational modes.Timeslots N, 0, and all other timeslots prior to X represent the guardintervals 602 described above, and thus the descriptor 706 indicatesthat BEP traffic may be transported during these timeslots. At timeslotX, the SFD 603 may delineate the start of the H-TDM frame. The Sync 604follows the SFD 603 and is shown in timeslots X+1 through X+14. Thefirst seven timeslots of the Sync 604, timeslots X+1 through X+7,provide a forward timestamp 708, and the last seven timeslots of theSync 604, timeslots X+8 through X+14, provide a loop-back timestamp 710,each of which are described in detail below. The TS Map 606 may followin timeslot X+15 and subsequent timeslots. In one embodiment, one ormore idle octets or SONET/SDH transport overhead 610 octets may beinserted between timeslots X+7 and X+8. Such octets enable efficientmapping of the Sync 604 to an SONET/SDH frame, such that the Sync 604aligns with the columns of the SONET/SDH frame.

FIG. 7B illustrates a more detailed layout of the Sync 604 from FIG. 6B.The information contained in FIG. 7B is similar to the informationcontained in FIG. 7A. However, rather than immediately communicating theSync 604, the overlay synchronous timeslot scheme first communicates theSONET/SDH transport overhead 610. When communicating the overlaysynchronous timeslot scheme over 64 bit/66 bit (64B/66B) encoded media,there may be an offset between the SFD 603 and the beginning of theSONET/SDH transport overhead 610, which may provide rapid anddeterministic alignment to 64B/66B sync fields. As such, the overlaysynchronous timeslot scheme may include a pointer 712 that follows theSFD 603 and points to the start of the SONET/SDH transport overhead 610.BEP data may be communicated in the offset interval 714 between thepointer 712 and the start of the SONET/SDH transport overhead 610 attimeslot Y. Alternatively, idle data may be communicated in the offsetinterval 714. The Sync 604 may be communicated within undefined octetsof the SONET/SDH transport overhead 610. As such, a first portion of theSONET/SDH transport overhead 610 may be communicated from timeslot Y totimeslot Z−1, and the Sync 604 may be communicated between timeslot Zthrough timeslot Z+13. Starting at timeslot Z+14, a second portion ofthe SONET/SDH transport overhead 610 may communicate the remainder ofthe SONET/SDH transport overhead 610.

FIG. 8 illustrates one embodiment of the forward timestamp 708.Specifically, FIG. 8 illustrates a seven-octet forward timestamp 708,where each row represents an octet and each column represents theposition of the bits within the octet. The octets may be arranged inorder of significance from top to bottom such that the least significantoctet, octet 0, is at the top and the most significant octet, octet 6,is at the bottom. Similarly, the bits may be arranged in order ofsignificance from left to right, such that the LSB of each octet, bit 0,is at the left and the MSB of each octet, bit 7, is at the right. As iscommon in Ethernet communications, data may be communicated from the LSBto the MSB and from least significant octet to most significant octet,such that the bits are communicated row-by-row from left to rightstarting with the top octet and ending with the bottom octet.

The first three octets of the forward timestamp 708 may specify atwenty-four bit timestamp, T-Sync. The layout and properties of thetimestamp are similar to the timestamp in the Sync 202 described above.Also similar to the Sync 202, the fourth octet, octet 3, of the forwardtimestamp 708 may be a control octet that may be used to initiate ormaintain synchronized communication between nodes. Specifically, thefirst five bits, bit 0 through bit 4, indicate the quality of the clockof the node that is communicating the Sync 604. While bits 5 and 6 ofoctet 3 are used to establish the H-TDM operational mode as describedabove, these bits may be left open once the H-TDM operational mode isestablished between the two nodes. Bit 7 of octet 3 may be used as aparity bit for verifying the integrity of the first four octets.

In addition to the twenty-four bit clock used for the T-Sync and othertimestamps, each node that supports the H-TDM operational mode maymaintain a sixteen-bit clock that counts once at the end of each window.For example, with each bit representing 0.01 ns, a 125 μssynchronization window may be reached when the twenty-four bit digitalclock reaches a value of “101111101011110000100000.” Each time thetwenty-four bit digital clock reaches this value, it may reset, and thesixteen-bit digital clock may increment once. Thus, the nodes may usethe sixteen-bit clock to identify the individual frames with a framecount timestamp, which is similar to an identification or serial number.

The next two octets in the forward timestamp 708, octet 4 and octet 5,specify the frame count timestamp, T-FC. The T-FC may be used to accountfor multi-frame periods of delay in the communication between anupstream node and a downstream node as described below. With sixteenbits available for the T-FC, each bit may represent one 125 μs windowfor a total range of about 8.192 seconds. Octet 4 contains the LSBs ofthe sixteen-bit T-FC, which may be bits 00 through 07 located in bit 0through bit 7. Octet 5 contains the MSBs of the sixteen-bit T-FC, whichmay be bits 08 through 15 located in bit 0 through bit 7. The last octetin the forward timestamp 708, octet 6, has the first seven bits, bit 0through bit 6, open, and uses the eighth bit, bit 7, as a parity bit forverifying the integrity of the forward timestamp 708. The loop-backtimestamp 710 may be formatted similar to the forward timestamp 708, butwith different loop-back values for the timestamp and frame count asdescribed below.

FIG. 9A illustrates an exemplary block diagram of the process forestablishing the H-TDM operational mode. The process may begin when anupstream node 902 creates an upstream synchronization timestamp (U-Sync)906 with the format of the Sync 604. The upstream node 902 sets theU-Sync's forward timestamp 708 values equal to the relative time of theupstream node 902. Specifically, the value of the upstream node'stwenty-four bit clock at time T1 may be inserted into the T-Sync field,and the value of the upstream node's sixteen-bit clock at time T1 may beinserted into the T-FC field. Concurrently, the upstream node 902 mayalso internally record the T-Syncs associated with each T-FC, therebycreating a record of when each U-Sync 906 was transmitted. Zero valuesmay be transmitted in the loop-back synchronization timestamp (L-Sync)and the loop-back frame count (L-FC) fields in the loop-back timestamp710 on the first communication iteration of this process. The upstreamnode 902 may then transmit the U-Sync 906 to the downstream node 904 attime T1. A transmission delay, D1, may occur while the U-Sync 906 isbeing transported from the upstream node 902 to the downstream node 904.

At time T2, the downstream node 904 receives the U-Sync 906 and storesan internal timestamp indicating when the U-Sync 906 was received. Uponreceiving the U-Sync 906, the downstream node 904 processes thetimestamp, which causes an internal processing delay, D2. As part of theprocessing, the downstream node 904 may create a downstreamsynchronization timestamp (D-Sync) 908 with a format similar to the Sync604. When creating the D-Sync 903, the downstream node 904 may set theD-Sync's forward timestamp 708 values equal to the relative time of thedownstream node 904. Specifically, the value of the downstream node'stwenty-four bit clock at time T3 may be inserted into the T-Sync field,and the value of the downstream node's sixteen-bit clock at time T3 maybe inserted into the T-FC field. The downstream node 904 may also setthe value of the L-Sync equal to the calculated internal processingdelay, D2, which may be calculated by subtracting the internal timestampthat indicates when the U-Sync 906 was received from the internaltimestamp at time T3. In addition, the downstream node 904 may set thevalue of the L-FC equal to the T-FC value in the U-Sync 906. Thedownstream node 904 then transmits the D-Sync 908 to the upstream node902 at time T3. A transmission delay, D3, occurs while the D-Sync 908 isbeing transported from the downstream node 904 to the upstream node 902.In some embodiments, it may be assumed that there are symmetrictransmission delays between the upstream node 902 and the downstreamnode 904, such that the value of D3 is equal to the value of D1.

At time T4, the upstream node 902 receives the D-Sync 906 and calculatesthe transmission delay D1. As part of the calculation of thetransmission delay D1, a total delay, D_(Total), is first calculated.The upstream node 902 can correlate the U-Sync 906 to the D-Sync 908using the T-FC in the U-Sync 906 and the L-FC in the D-Sync 908. Thus,the upstream node 902 can determine that the U-Sync 906 was transmittedat time T1 and the corresponding D-Sync 908 was received at time T4. Thetotal delay may be equal to the difference between time T4 and T1, andmay also be equal to the sum of the internal processing delay D2 at thedownstream node 904 and the two transport delays, D1 and D3. Thisrelationship is illustrated in equation 1:

D _(Total) =T4−T1=D1+D2+D3.   (1)

Using the assumption that the value of D3 is equal to the value of D1,the total delay is equal to twice the transmission delay D1 plus theinternal processing delay D2. This relationship is illustrated inequation 2:

D _(Total)=(2*D1)+D2.   (2)

To calculate the transmission delay D1, the internal processing delay D2that was received in the L-Sync of the D-Sync 906 may be subtracted fromthe calculated total delay and the result may be divided by two, asshown in equation 3:

D1=(D _(total) −D2)/2.   (3)

The upstream node 902 can use the transport delay D1 to synchronize itsclock with the downstream node's clock, if desired. Specifically, theupstream node 902 can use the transport delay D1 and the forwardtimestamp 708 from the downstream node to synchronize the upstreamnode's clock with the downstream node's clock, and phase-align theupstream node's synchronization windows with the downstream node'ssynchronization windows. However, doing so does not inform thedownstream node of the upstream node's processing delay and/or theexistence of the frequency-synchronization and phase-alignment. Thus,the upstream node may send a second U-Sync 906 to the downstream node904. Specifically, at time T5, the upstream node 902 transmits thesecond U-Sync 906 with the forward timestamp 708 values equal to therelative time of the upstream node 902 at time T5, and the loop-backtimestamp 710 equal to the calculated transmission delay D1. At time T5,the upstream node 902 may also store an internal timestamp indicatingwhen the U-Sync 906 was transmitted for subsequent transmission delaycalculations. Like before, the transmission delay D1 occurs while theU-Sync 906 is being transported from the upstream node 902 to thedownstream node 904.

At time T6, the downstream node 904 receives the U-Sync 906 and storesan internal timestamp indicating when the U-Sync 906 was received. Uponreceiving the U-Sync 906, the downstream node 904 internally processesthe timestamp. As part of the internal processing, the downstream node'sclock, D-Clock, may be reset to be equal to the value of the upstreamnode's clock 902, U-Clock. This may be accomplished by setting the valueof the downstream node clock 904 equal to the sum of the forwardtimestamp 708 and the loop-back timestamp received in the U-Sync 906, asshown in equation 4:

D-Clock=U-Clock T5+D1=forward timestamp+loop-back timestamp   (4)

As mentioned above, the first communication iteration may have zerovalues for the L-Sync and the L-FC fields. In such a case, thedownstream node 904 effectively sets the value of its clock equal to theforward timestamp 708. Because the first communication iteration doesnot take into account the transmission delay, the downstream node 904may be frequency-synchronized but may not be phase-aligned to theupstream node 902, similar to the H-Sync operational mode.Alternatively, rather than resetting the downstream node clock 904, anoffset between the clock and the received timestamp may be recorded toenable the downstream node 904 to be frequency-synchronized andphase-aligned to multiple nodes. The process described above continuessuch that the upstream node 902 and the downstream node 904 adjust thefrequency-synchronization and phase-alignment with every synchronizationwindow when the upstream node 902 and the downstream node 904 operate inthe H-TDM operational mode.

FIG. 9B illustrates a timeline of a successful initiation offrequency-synchronized and phase-aligned communication between theupstream node 902 and the downstream node 904. Like FIG. 5B, FIG. 9Bcontains a separate timeline for each of the upstream node 902 and thedownstream node 904, where each timeline represents time relative to thecorresponding node. Specifically, the time relative to the upstream node902 may be shown above the timeline for the upstream node 902 andindicated by T_(Ux), where x may be an integer. The time relative to thedownstream node 904 may be shown below the timeline for the downstreamnode 904 and indicated by T_(Dx), where x may be an integer. An absolutetime may be shown between the two timelines and indicated by Tx, where xmay be an integer. The time relative to the upstream node 902 and thetime relative to the downstream node 904 may not necessarily be equal tothe absolute time.

At time T1, the upstream node 902 communicates the U-Sync 906 to thedownstream node 904. The U-Sync 906 includes a timestamp set to therelative time of the upstream node 902 when the U-Sync 906 istransmitted. In the exemplary timeline shown in FIG. 9B, the forwardtimestamp 708 has the T-Sync set to the twenty-four bit clock time forT_(U1) and the T-FC set to the sixteen-bit clock time for T_(U1). Attime T1, concurrent with communicating the U-Sync 906, the upstream node902 stores the relative time T_(U1) for use in subsequently calculatinga total delay as described above.

As shown in the timeline for the downstream node 904, there may be atransmission delay, D1, when communicating the U-Sync 906 from theupstream node 902 to the downstream node 904. At time T2, the downstreamnode 904 receives the U-Sync 906, processes the U-Sync 906, andcalculates the processing delay D2. At time T3, the downstream node 904transmits the D-Sync 908, which includes the forward timestamp 708 setto the relative time of the downstream node 904. In the exemplarytimeline shown in FIG. 9B, the forward timestamp 708, including thesynchronization window timestamp and the frame count timestamp, may beset to time T_(D1). The D-Sync 908 also includes a loop-back timestamp710 with L-Sync set to the calculated internal processing delay D2 andthe L-FC set to the T-FC received in the U-Sync 906.

As shown in the timeline for the upstream node 902, there may be atransmission delay D3 when communicating the D-Sync 908 from thedownstream node 904 to the upstream node 902. At time T4, the upstreamnode 902 receives the D-Sync 908 and calculates the one-way transmissiondelay between the upstream node 902 and the downstream node 904. At timeT5, the upstream node transmits another U-Sync 906 that includes atimestamp set to the upstream node 902 relative time when the U-Sync 906is transmitted. In the exemplary timeline shown in FIG. 9B, the forwardtimestamp 708 has the T-Sync and the T-FC set to time T_(U2). The U-Sync906 also has the loop-back timestamp 710 with L-Sync and L-FC set toindicate the calculated delay D1.

As shown in the timeline for the downstream node 904, there may be atransmission delay D1 when communicating the U-Sync 906 from theupstream node 902 to the downstream node 904. At time T6, the downstreamnode 904 receives and processes the U-Sync 906. As part of theprocessing, the downstream node 904 sets the downstream node clock equalto the sum of the forward timestamp 708 and the loop-back timestamp 710.As shown in FIG. 9B, such a method of resetting the downstream node 904clock aligns the synchronization windows of the upstream node 902 andthe downstream node 904 in frequency and phase. In particular, thedownstream node clock may be reset at time T6 such that the relativetime of the downstream node, T_(D2), may be equal to the relative timeof the upstream node, T_(U3), which may be equal to the sum of theforward timestamp 708 of the U-Sync 906, T_(U2), and the delay D1.

FIG. 10 illustrates an exemplary functional block diagram of a clockingarchitecture for supporting the frequency-synchronized communication inthe H-Sync operational mode and the frequency-synchronized andphase-aligned communication in the H-TDM operational mode. As shown inFIG. 10, a network node 1000 may have a Physical Layer receiver (PHY Rx)interface 1002, a Physical Layer transmitter (PHY Tx) interface 1004,and a Media Access Control Layer (MAC) processor 1006. The PHY Rxinterface 1002 receives data from a communication medium, and the PHY Txinterface 1004 transmits data to a communication medium. While a singlePHY Rx interface 1002 and PHY Tx interface 1004 pair may be shown on thenetwork node 1000, it may be contemplated that a plurality of PHY Rxinterface 1002 and PHY Tx interface 1004 pairs may be implemented on thenetwork node 1000. Each PHY Rx interface 1002 and PHY Tx interface 1004pair may represent one port for supporting full-duplex communicationwith other network nodes.

The MAC processor 1006 interprets and frames data received oncommunication link 1008 from the PHY Rx interface 1002 for use by otherlogic (not shown), e.g. switch fabric, on the network node 1000. The MACprocessor 1006 also transmits frames of data received from the otherlogic on the network node 1000, and communicates the data oncommunication link 1010 to be transmitted by the PHY Tx interface 1004.In an embodiment, the data processed by the MAC processor 1006 may beformatted in accordance with a standard Ethernet packet or in accordancewith one of the frame formats illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B.

The network node 1000 may use a clock reference 1012 to establish aninternal synchronization window clock 1014. The clock reference 1012 maybe an internal reference such as a voltage-controlled crystal oscillatoror some other oscillator that provides a reference clock with anaccuracy of ± about 20 ppm. The clock reference 1012 may also be anexternal reference such as a clock signal received from external logic.For example, if the network node 1000 was implemented as a line card,then the network node 1000 may receive the clock reference 1012 from aswitching fabric with which the network node 1000 is connected. Theclock reference 1012 may also be an external reference that may be adistributed clock signal such as a building integrated timing supply(BITS).

As mentioned above, the internal synchronization window clock 1014 maybe implemented as a twenty-four bit digital clock that measures timewithin a synchronization window. Each time the internal synchronizationwindow clock 1014 reaches the end of the synchronization window, it mayreset to begin tracking time in a subsequent synchronization window. Theinternal frame count 1016 may be implemented as a sixteen bit digitalclock that may be incremented once at the end of each synchronizationwindow. Together, the value of the internal synchronization window clock1014 and the value of the internal frame count 1016 make up an internaltimestamp that may be used as described below.

When receiving data on the PHY Rx interface 1002, a new data frame maybe indicated with a start of frame delimiter (SFD). The network node1000 may have a receiving (Rx) timestamp generator 1018 that may use thevalues of the internal synchronization window clock 1014 and the valueof the internal frame count 1016 to generate an Rx timestamp thatindicates when the new data frame was received. The value of the Rxtimestamp may be used by a delay calculator 1038 and a timestampcomparator 1040 as described in detail below. Subsequent to the SFD, aSync 604 may be received by the PHY RX interface 1002. The Sync 604includes a forward timestamp 708 containing a T-Sync value and a T-FCvalue, and a loop-back timestamp 710 containing an L-Sync value and anL-FC value. The internal node may extract each of these values with aT-FC Extractor 1020, an L-FC Extractor 1022, a T-Sync Extractor 1024,and an L-Sync Extractor 1026.

As discussed in detail above, the downstream node 904 operating in theH-TDM operational mode may reset their clock with the sum of the forwardtimestamp 708 and the loop-back timestamp 710 received from the upstreamnode 902. If the network node 1000 is operating as the downstream node904, then the values of the T-FC Extractor 1020 and the L-FC Extractor1022 may be input to a frame count (FC) sum 1028, thereby generating asum of the two FC values. The sum value generated by the FC sum 1028 maybe used to update the value of the internal frame count 1016 of thenetwork node 1000. Similarly, the values of the T-Sync Extractor 1024and the L-Sync Extractor 1026 may be input to a synchronization (Sync)sum 1030. The sum value generated by the Sync sum 1030 may be used toupdate the value of the internal synchronization window clock 1014 ofthe downstream node 904.

When the network node 1000 is operating in the H-Sync operational mode,the values of the L-FC Extractor 1022 and the L-Sync Extractor 1026 maybe initialized to zero. As discussed above, the Sync 202 onlycommunicates values that may be extracted by the T-FC Extractor 1020 andthe T-Sync Extractor 1024. As such, when the network node 1000 isoperating as the downstream node 904 in the H-Sync operational mode, theinternal frame count 1016 and the internal synchronization window 1014may be updated with the values of the T-FC Extractor 1020 and the T-SyncExtractor 1024, respectively. When the network node 1000 is notoperating as the downstream node 904, then the FC sum 1028 and the Syncsum 1030 may be disabled such that the internal frame count 1016 and theinternal synchronization window clock 1014 are not updated.

When transmitting data on the PHY Tx interface 1004, a new data framemay be indicated with a SFD. The network node 1000 may have atransmitting (Tx) timestamp generator 1032 that uses the values of theinternal synchronization window clock 1014 and the internal frame count1016 to generate a Tx timestamp that indicates when a new data frame istransmitted. The value of the Tx timestamp may be input to a selector1034 discussed in detail below.

When the network node 1000 is operating as the upstream node 902 in theH-TDM operational mode, the value of the Tx timestamp may also be inputto a Tx timestamp memory 1036. When the upstream node transmits theU-Sync 906, the timestamp that indicates when the transmission occursmay be stored at the upstream node 902. When the upstream node 904receives the D-Sync 908 from the downstream node 904, the value of theL-FC in the D-Sync 908 may be used to reference the timestamp with whichthe D-Sync 908 corresponds. When the network node 1000 is operating asthe upstream node 904 in the H-TDM operational mode, the value of theL-FC Extractor 1022 may be input to the Tx timestamp memory 1036 andused as a reference when reading the timestamp that indicates when thecorresponding U-Sync 906 was transmitted.

The value read from the Tx timestamp memory 1036 may be input to a delaycalculator 1038. The delay calculator 1038 also receives inputs from theRx timestamp generator 1018 and the L-Sync Extractor 1026. As part ofcalculating the one-way transmission delay, a total delay is firstcalculated. The delay calculator 1038 may calculate the total delay bysubtracting the value of the Rx timestamp generator 1018 from the valueread from the Tx timestamp memory 1036. The value of the Rx timestampgenerator 1018 corresponds to the time that the D-Sync 908 may bereceived at the network node 1000 when it is implemented as the upstreamnode 902. The delay calculator may then calculate the two-waytransmission delay by subtracting the value of the L-Sync Extractor 1026from the result of the previous subtraction. The value of the L-SyncExtractor 1026 corresponds with the internal delay, D2, calculated bythe downstream node 908. The delay calculator 1038 may then determinethe one-way transmission delay by dividing the result of the subtractionby two. The delay calculated by the delay calculator may be input to aselector 1042, discussed in more detail below.

When the network node 1000 is operating as the downstream node 904 inthe H-TDM operational mode, the value of the Tx timestamp may also beinput to a timestamp comparator 1040. The timestamp comparator 1040receives inputs from the Rx timestamp generator 1018 and the Txtimestamp generator 1032. The downstream node 904 may then calculate theinternal processing delay, D2, and the timestamp comparator 1040 outputsa difference between the Rx timestamp and the Tx timestamp to determinethe internal processing delay, D2. The difference calculated by thetimestamp comparator 1040 may be input to the selector 1042.

The selector 1042 may be used to select which values are input to anL-Sync Inserter 1048 and an L-FC Inserter 1050. When the network node1000 operates as the downstream node 904, the selector 1042 may selectthe timestamp comparator 1040 output for the value in the L-SyncInserter 1048, and may select the T-FC Extractor 1020 value fromcommunication link 1044 for the value of the L-FC Inserter 1050. Whenthe network node 1000 operates as the upstream node 904, the selector1042 may select the delay calculator 1038 output for the value of theL-Sync Inserter 1048 and the L-FC Inserter 1050.

Similarly, the selector 1034 may be used to select which values areinput to a T-Sync Inserter 1052 and a T-FC Inserter 1054. When thenetwork node 1000 operates in the H-TDM operational mode, the selector1034 may select the Tx timestamp generator 1032 output. When the networknode 1000 operates as the downstream node 904 in the H-Sync operationalmode, the selector 1034 may select the T-Sync Extractor 1024 value fromthe communication link 1046 for the value of the T-Sync Inserter 1052.When the network node 1000 operates as the upstream node 902 in theH-Sync operational mode, the selector 1034 may select the Tx timestampgenerator 1032 output for the value of the T-Sync Inserter 1052.

A Tx selector 1056 receives the values held in each of the T-SyncInserter 1052, T-FC Inserter 1054, L-Sync Inserter 1048, L-FC Inserter1050, and data communicated on communication link 1010, and selects eachin succession for transmission by the PHY Tx interface 1004. In anembodiment, the Tx selector 1056 selects each of the values such thatthe PHY Tx interface 1004 transmits data according to one of the formatsshown in FIGS. 6A or 6B. When the network node 1000 operates as theupstream node in the H-Sync operational mode, the Tx selector 1056 mayselect the communication link 1010 for transmitting standard Ethernetpackets, and may select the value held in the T-Sync Inserter 1052during the IPG 102 to transmit the Sync 202.

One skilled in the art will recognize that the network node 1000 may beimplemented as one or a combination of a plurality of applicationspecific integrated circuits (ASICs) or implemented using generalpurpose computing, described in detail below. In an embodiment, thesynchronization functions of the network node 1000 may be implementedfor each port of a line card or other network interface card.Implementing the synchronization functions at each port enables eachport of a line card or other network interface card to be asynchronouslysynchronized to a plurality of different upstream and downstream networknodes at the same time. In other words, each port may have an internalsynchronization window clock 1014 and internal frame count 1016synchronized with another network node, but the internal synchronizationwindow clock 1014 and internal frame count 1016 does not need to besynchronized on all ports.

In another embodiment, the synchronization functions of the network node1000 may be implemented to synchronize all ports of a line card or othernetwork interface card. In this embodiment, all of the ports on the linecard or other network interface card may be synchronized to a singleupstream network node. In a further embodiment, the synchronizationfunctions of the network node 1000 may be implemented on a switchingfabric or other higher-level hardware to synchronize communication ofone or more line cards or other network interface cards.

The upstream node 502, the downstream node 504, the upstream node 902,the downstream node 904, and the network node 1000 described above maybe implemented on any general-purpose computer with sufficientprocessing power, memory resources, and network throughput capability tohandle the necessary workload placed upon it. FIG. 11 illustrates atypical, general-purpose computer system suitable for implementing oneor more embodiments disclosed herein. The computer system 1100 includesa processor 1102 (which may be referred to as a central processor unitor CPU) that may be in communication with memory devices includingsecondary storage 1104, read only memory (ROM) 1106, random accessmemory (RAM) 1108, input/output (I/O) 1110 devices, and networkconnectivity devices 1112. The processor may be implemented as one ormore CPU chips.

The secondary storage 1104 may be typically comprised of one or moredisk drives or tape drives and may be used for non-volatile storage ofdata and as an over-flow data storage device if RAM 1108 may not belarge enough to hold all working data. Secondary storage 1104 may beused to store programs that are loaded into RAM 1108 when such programsare selected for execution. The ROM 1106 may be used to storeinstructions and perhaps data, which are read during program execution.ROM 1106 may be a non-volatile memory device, which typically has asmall memory capacity relative to the larger memory capacity ofsecondary storage. The RAM 1108 may be used to store volatile data andperhaps to store instructions. Access to both ROM 1106 and RAM 1108 maybe typically faster than to secondary storage 1104.

I/O 1110 devices may include printers, video monitors, liquid crystaldisplays (LCDs), touch screen displays, keyboards, keypads, switches,dials, mice, track balls, voice recognizers, card readers, paper tapereaders, or other well-known input devices. The network connectivitydevices 1112 may take the form of modems, modem banks, Ethernet cards,universal serial bus (USB) interface cards, serial interfaces, tokenring cards, fiber distributed data interface (FDDI) cards, wirelesslocal area network (WLAN) cards, radio transceiver cards such as codedivision multiple access (CDMA) and/or global system for mobilecommunications (GSM) radio transceiver cards, and other well-knownnetwork devices. These network connectivity devices 1112 may enable theprocessor 1102 to communicate with an Internet or one or more intranets.With such a network connection, it may be contemplated that theprocessor 1102 might receive information from the network, or mightoutput information to the network in the course of performing theabove-described method steps. Such information, which may be oftenrepresented as a sequence of instructions to be executed using processor1102, may be received from and outputted to the network, for example, inthe form of a computer data signal embodied in a carrier wave.

Such information, which may include data or instructions to be executedusing processor 1102 for example, may be received from and outputted tothe network, for example, in the form of a computer data base bandsignal or signal embodied in a carrier wave. The base band signal orsignal embodied in the carrier wave generated by the networkconnectivity devices 1112 may propagate in or on the surface ofelectrical conductors, in coaxial cables, in waveguides, in opticalmedia, for example optical fiber, or in the air or free space. Theinformation contained in the base band signal or signal embedded in thecarrier wave may be ordered according to different sequences, as may bedesirable for either processing or generating the information ortransmitting or receiving the information. The base band signal orsignal embedded in the carrier wave, or other types of signals currentlyused or hereafter developed, referred to herein as the transmissionmedium, may be generated according to several methods well known to oneskilled in the art.

The processor 1102 executes instructions, codes, computer programs,scripts which it accesses from hard disk, floppy disk, optical disk(these various disk based systems may all be considered secondarystorage 1104), ROM 1106, RAM 1108, or the network connectivity devices1112.

While several embodiments have been provided in the present disclosure,it should be understood that the disclosed systems and methods might beembodied in many other specific forms without departing from the spiritor scope of the present disclosure. The present examples are to beconsidered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the intention is notto be limited to the details given herein. For example, the variouselements or components may be combined or integrated in another systemor certain features may be omitted, or not implemented. In addition,persons of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the term octetas used herein is synonymous with the term byte, and that the octetsdescribed herein do not necessarily have to contain eight bits.

In addition, techniques, systems, subsystems, and methods described andillustrated in the various embodiments as discrete or separate may becombined or integrated with other systems, modules, techniques, ormethods without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.Other items shown or discussed as coupled or directly coupled orcommunicating with each other may be indirectly coupled or communicatingthrough some interface, device, or intermediate component whetherelectrically, mechanically, or otherwise. Other examples of changes,substitutions, and alterations are ascertainable by one skilled in theart and could be made without departing from the spirit and scopedisclosed herein.

1. A network component comprising: at least one processor configured toimplement a method comprising: initiating a synchronization window; andpromoting the transmission of a frame comprising a control symbol,wherein the control symbol delineates a beginning of the frame, andwherein the control symbol is offset from the beginning of thesynchronization window.
 2. The component of claim 1 wherein the methodfurther comprises: promoting transmission of a plurality of the frames,wherein the location of the control symbol relative to thesynchronization window varies within the frames.
 3. The component ofclaim 1 wherein each synchronization window is comprised of a firstinterval and a second interval, and wherein the frame is transmittedduring the second interval.
 4. The component of claim 3 wherein thecontrol symbol delineates a beginning of the second interval.
 5. Thecomponent of claim 4 wherein nothing is transmitted during the firstinterval.
 6. The component of claim 4 wherein the method furthercomprises promoting the transmission of a low priority data, wherein atleast a portion of the low priority data is transmitted during the firstinterval.
 7. The component of claim 6 wherein at least a portion of thelow priority data is transmitted during the second interval.
 8. Thecomponent of claim 6 wherein the synchronization window comprises athird interval, wherein at least a portion of the low priority data istransmitted during the third interval.
 9. The component of claim 8wherein the integrity of the frame is maintained when at least some ofthe data in the first interval, the third interval, or both is lost. 10.The component of claim 1 wherein the synchronization window has a periodof about 125 microseconds.
 11. A system comprising: an upstream node incommunication with a downstream node, wherein the upstream nodetransmits a data stream comprising a plurality of frames to thedownstream node, wherein the data stream is organized into a pluralityof synchronization windows, and wherein the frames float within thesynchronization windows.
 12. The system of claim 11 wherein the datastream further comprises a low priority data, and wherein only the lowpriority data is lost when the downstream node does not receive some ofthe data at a beginning or at an end of the synchronization window. 13.The system of claim 12 wherein the low priority data is located betweenat least some of the frames.
 14. The system of claim 11 wherein theintegrity of the frames are maintained when a beginning of the framesvaries with respect to a beginning of the synchronization window. 15.The system of claim 11 wherein each frame comprises a header comprisingan Ethernet control symbol located at the beginning of the header. 16.The system of claim 15 wherein the header further comprises pointer to astart of the packet.
 17. A method comprising: transmitting an Ethernetdata stream comprising an Ethernet control symbol, wherein the Ethernetcontrol symbol is transmitted within a synchronization window anddelineates a start of a packet within the synchronization window. 18.The method of claim 17 wherein the Ethernet control symbol is a /K28.1/control symbol.
 19. The method of claim 17 wherein the control precedesa clock synchronization data.
 20. The method of claim 17 wherein thecontrol symbol interrupts an Ethernet packet.